Marvel: New Adult Arts Retreat Ready to Launch in Fall of 2015

July 24, 2015

For two years, a group of dedicated individuals from London, Grand Bend & Sarnia have shared a common goal: To create a joyful, creative learning retreat located in Lambton Shores for adult participants drawn from across Ontario & Michigan.

The MARVEL Arts Academy plans to host its first two retreat weekends in the fall of 2015.

The first weekend will be held October 23, 24 & 25, 2015. The theme for the first retreat, “The Art of Storytelling,” will be explored through four distinct courses and artistic formats, facilitated by experienced instructors: Photography with Don Martel; Textile/Felting with Chris Ferguson; Acrylics with Marion Anderson & Storytelling with Laura Louise Tobin.

MARVEL is an acronym for Making Arts and Recreation Valuable Experiences for Life. For the team who conceived it, MARVEL fulfills two needs: it provides adults with a unique retreat and learning experience, held on one of the most sought-after shorelines in Ontario, while also reinvigorating the local economy with new visitors during off-peak seasons.

Most of all, the founders and Board of Directors of MARVEL are passionate about the integrity of the programming. As Paul Wilson, who was chair of the Lambton Shores Economic Development committee explains, “Our goal is to keep class sizes small and personal. We will host a minimum of five and a maximum of 12 participants in each course.”

Fellow organizer, Jim Southcott adds, “We want to attract participants from the local area and across Ontario & Michigan, who are passionate about lifelong learning in a non competitive environment.”

The second weekend will be held November 6, 7, & 8, 2015. Participants in this session will choose among several courses not offered in October: Watercolour Painting with Cheryl O; Ukulele with Donna Creighton; Pastel Drawing with Barry Richman & Basket Building with Alice Lingard. The theme for November is “Joyful.”

Myrna Pronchuk, both an artist and fellow organizer, is thrilled with the talent MARVEL has attracted, “We want to provide participants valuable learning experiences, so we have been very selective in our instructor recruitment. All Marvel instructors are working artists with excellent adult instructing credentials.”

MARVEL organizers intend to launch a 2016 season with even more program offerings.